This Little Project We Call Bridge

It's not easy being a church. Studying the seven churches at the start of the Revelation over the last two months has reinforced this idea for me yet again. The world pulls so hard. Our loyalty is often so weak. We crumble. The funny thing is though, that it isn't the obvious threats to our Christian walk that plague us the worst. It's the subtle tugs that pull at our time, our hearts, and our minds. Remaining faithful to Jesus in the midst of a busy world takes a lot of intentionality, accountability through community, and fresh reminders that each one of us (continually) need a Savior. It's not as if we set out to be bad disciples. Our faults just seem to happen.

Christ's warnings against complacency at times seems almost beaten to death in Revelation chapters 2 and 3. Yet in all honesty, apathy and complacency seem to not only be the biggest threat facing the Church during the first century, but also the greatest threat facing the Church today (ours included). It's as if we each go through periods of ups and downs, commitments, backsliding, and re-commitments. We need the reminder. We need our Lord (and our community) to lovingly kick us in the shorts and keep us on track, reminding us of grace and the unrelenting love of Christ.

However, sadly when we do go through those struggles, it so often appears as though the very community intended to hold us up is the first to tear us down. Why is this? Why are we so bad at being that beautiful bride of Christ talked about in Scripture? It never fails to astound me, every time I reread those passages that this is the imagery Jesus chose to describe his relationship to the church. Have you seen our church, Jesus? Have you seen the one down the street? Honestly. Beautiful?

And yet for all our faults, blemishes, and downright ugly spots, we are still (and always) his beautiful bride. (Apparently real love is blind). Even the churches and individuals that fall so far are never beyond his adoration and continued pursuit. Maybe this is what is supposed to keep us a place of grace. The perpetual knowledge that it really isn't about us.

Lord, thanks for your unyielding love and for allowing us this little project we call, Bridge. Thanks for never failing even when we do.

There's a model of love we can learn from.